Danny's dealing far from done this offseason

The toughest call Celtics president Danny Ainge may have had to make late last week was not necessarily the decision to trade Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to the Brooklyn Nets at what is an obvious crossroads for the franchise. It was the next call to Rajon Rondo to talk about the future of the Celtics in the post-Big 3 Era.

The toughest call Celtics president Danny Ainge may have had to make late last week was not necessarily the decision to trade Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to the Brooklyn Nets at what is an obvious crossroads for the franchise.

It was the next call to Rajon Rondo to talk about the future of the Celtics in the post-Big 3 Era.

Ainge said he has spoken to Rondo a few times since news of the proposed trade broke – and hopes to meet with him in person soon – about the direction of the team moving forward, and his role in it.

"I’ve always valued Rajon’s input on the players he likes," Ainge said following Monday’s press conference to introduce Kelly Olynyk and Colton Iverson as the team’s newest draft picks. "I feel like I need to walk him through the whole exercise of what my job is and what it entails. He wants us to bring in the players who he feels will help us try to win a championship this year. He feels there are some guys out there who we should be trying to get.

"I appreciate that in Rajon. But that’s not realistic for us at this moment."

While Rondo almost certainly pushed Ainge to reach out to his former high school teammate Josh Smith – an unrestricted free agent from the Atlanta Hawks who could be in line for a maximum-value contract – Ainge said the team will not be going after any high-profile free agents at the outset of the new league season.

Once the proposed trade of Garnett, Pierce and Jason Terry to the Brooklyn Nets for Keith Bogans, MarShon Brooks, Kris Humphries, Kris Joseph, Gerald Wallace and three first-round draft picks is completed on July 12, Ainge hopes to have additional moves in place that will relocate players from that deal – Humphries, and possibly Wallace – and reduce the team’s roster and payroll crunch.

"We anticipate having too many players now," he said. "We need to get to become a non-(luxury) tax paying team just because of the flexibility that gives us in building a team. There’s some things we have to do to tweak our roster this summer that are more of a priority than chasing free agents."

That may make sense to young players such as Avery Bradley and Jared Sullinger, who can be sold on being part of what Ainge is trying to build down the road. Ainge’s initial exchange with Rondo, however, suggests it could be a tougher sell for the All-Star point guard, who has already won one championship and is looking to remain in the spotlight competing for another one very soon.

Ainge reiterated his draft-night claim that the team is not looking to trade Rondo, who is recovering from anterior cruciate ligament surgery in February, but said he has received phone calls in recent days inquiring about the availability of Rondo, Bradley, Sullinger and Jeff Green.

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"We have younger players that other teams already want," he said. "They see us move KG and Paul – or that we’re working on a trade for them – and so people see that and all of a sudden I’m getting phone calls where everybody wants Rondo, everyone wants Avery, everybody wants Sullinger and Jeff Green.

"But that’s not our intention. That’s not what we’re trying to do at all. Right now our main focus is to try to trim down our roster and not have so many logjams at different positions."

Ainge said he believes clearing out the remaining logjams this summer will be easier than it was when he first looked to rebuild the Celtics 10 years ago.

"Ten years ago when I came we needed to take time to move guys, and get players through phases, and get better contracts before we were able to make moves," he said. "We won’t have to do that as much now. This summer, we need to make some changes in our roster, but not anything major."

Still, Ainge knows rebuilding will take creativity, hard work and a level of patience that allows a player like Rondo to understand why the team is not making a play for a player like Smith in the next few weeks.

"Everybody who’s been in Boston over the last six years with this great run – with some spectacular Hall of Fame players – has known that this day was going to come," he said. "It’s been talked about so much for the past couple of years. I don’t think anybody’s surprised or shocked.

"It’s a challenge for all of us – for players, for coaches, for management, for ownership, for fans. Most likely, we’re not competing for an NBA championship next year. But we will have goals, and we will create a culture, and we will teach our players how to win. We will have an opportunity with these young guys to see what they’re made of."

Scott Souza can be reached at 781-398-8006 or ssouza@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @scott_souza.